I do not own Digimon.

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"Sincerity & Courage" – Speech
Sincerity & Courage – Thoughts
Sincerity & Courage – Narration by the character

Steps to Romance – Chapter 21
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Taichi's POV

I stopped the boat. (A/N : Just a small boat with an engine, personal boat?) I was already far away from the coast. Emp. hasn't dispatched people to look for me. Is he really that busy with Mimi and Yamato's wedding? The wedding banquet is going to start. Perhaps this really is the best time to leave the Takuya family. Then I thought of all the times I was with Mimi. Why are all my memories in the Takuya family only about Mimi? Why am I only thinking about Mimi? 'I don't believe that you can't see it! I've always faced my feelings courageously, so why can't you? Why do you have to bottle up your emotions?' Why don't I have the courage to face my own feelings? Why am I letting Mimi marry someone else? This won't do. Mimi, you must wait for me. I tried to turn on the engine of the boat. It didn't work. Then I knew what I had to do. I jumped into the water, swimming as fast as I could.

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Mimi's POV

"Mimi," Yolei asked, trying not to stumble in her high heels, "Why aren't Mr. and Mrs. Tachikawa here?"

"Grandpa said that after I get married, he'll invite them back here."

"Your complexion looks bad. Did you not get enough sleep, or is it something else?"

"I'm fine. Maybe I'm just nervous." Not just nervous. About to make the biggest mistake of my life.

"Are you alright?" Yamato said, entering the room.

"Didn't you say that it starts at 11 p.m.?" Yolei asked.

"Err, maybe Emp. isn't ready yet."

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Yamato's POV

Yagami Taichi, you better come back soon.

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Emp.'s POV

"Emp., the guests are getting impatient. I've already tried my best to placate them. I don't know how long I can continue to placate them. Emp., do you have any new ideas?"

"I have none!"

"Emp., about this, we don't have any back-up or plans. All we have to rely on is what Master Yagami does. It's a little dangerous. If Master Yagami doesn't come back… this will affect the Takuya family's reputation."

"I don't care."

"What if Master Yagami really doesn't come back?"

"I have another groom."

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Taichi's POV

I was running towards the Takuya family's mansion. I opened the doors to the mansion, only to find the room in darkness, with no one in sight. Is the wedding already over? I fell to my knees. It's finished. Everything's finished.

Then, I heard footsteps behind me. "Finally, you're here." Yamato said. "If the prince isn't here, who will the little princess marry?"

I turned to look at him. "Why don't you go and see her? She's in her room."

I ran.

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Gennai's POV

"Gennai, how do I comfort Mimi? You have a daughter, so tell me. In this kind of situation, how do I comfort her?"

I didn't know what to answer, until I looked at the live security feed on the television monitor. "Emp., I think Miss Takuya doesn't need you to comfort her anymore." I gestured to the monitors.

"I cancelled the wedding, and I still haven't lost the bet?"

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Mimi's POV

I looked to the right, only to see Taichi standing there. He ran towards me, then kissed me tenderly on the lips, over and over again, then finally, for a long time, his hands around my waist, mine around his neck.

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Taichi's POV

I was sitting on one of the kitchen tables, wolfing down the delicious omu-rice (she drew a smiley face on it with ketchup) that Mimi had cooked for me.

"You really haven't eaten since last night?"

"I swam in the ocean, and even fought two sharks."

"Are you telling the truth?"

"I'm not going to tell you."

"Come on, tell me!"

I looked at the ring she had put on her right thumb (it was probably too big for her other fingers), then reached out to touch it. "Wow, and you're even wearing the ring I gave you." I looked at her face. "Are you blushing?"

"It's hot in here…" She was lying, I could tell. "And I put the ring there so that you, stubborn, bushy hair guy, won't take it back."

"Since you like it so much, I'll leave it in your care."

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Gennai's POV

I was eavesdropping on their conversation when Master Takaishi and Miss Yagami came running towards me.

"Head Manager Gennai, I heard that big brother's back. Is he in there?" Miss Yagami asked.

"Yes…" She started heading towards the door. "No, don't go in. Emp. specifically instructed not to disturb Master Yagami."

"Why?" Master Takaishi asked.

"That's because Miss Takuya wants to cook food for Master Yagami to eat."

"Really? That's great!"

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Yamato's POV

We – Hikari, Takeru and I - were sitting with Tai on the bleachers at the soccer field. We had made up, and were best friends again.

"Hey, Yamato. What kind of dates do girls like?" Tai asked me, blushing slightly.

"Oh, so no wonder you were playing badly today. You were worrying about where to bring Mimi for a date." Takeru teased him.

"I knew I shouldn't have asked you guys."

"Well, the first date is very important." Hikari said.

"And I hope that your first dates have only been with Takeru." Tai glared at her, suspicious.

"Well, I think that Mimi's the type of girl who goes for feeling instead of luxury. " I said.

"Yes, but I think what would touch Mimi's heart would be sincerity." Tai replied.

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Mimi's POV

Taichi had told me earlier that he would pick me up at 9 a.m., and I've been thinking about it since then. Is he asking me out on a date? Since it's a date… I have to pick out something to wear.

(The next day)

Should I change my clothes first? However, if I change my clothes first, won't that make me seem too impatient? Or should I be pretending to be asleep when he comes for me? Then I heard the doorknob turn. I ran back to my bed, threw the covers over me, and pretended to be asleep.

"Hey, princess Mimi, why aren't you ready yet? Didn't I tell you yesterday?"

I pretended to wake up, then stretched. "Sorry, I overslept."

"Were you too excited to sleep?"

"No! I slept very soundly, prince Taichi!" Then I realised that I had become too energetic for someone who had just woken up, so I pretended to be very sleepy. "Don't you see how sleepy I am now?"

"Right. Anyway, today's itinerary is special. I won't be following you. Here." He handed me a white piece of paper. "Follow the arrows to find me. I'll wait for you at the destination."

I smiled at the piece of paper, and I saw that he was grinning. "Hey, aren't you going to prepare? I'll leave first, bye. Remember, follow the arrows."

I changed into a simple black dress that ended a little above my knees, with a ribbon around my waist, and I paired it with a jewel blue headband and high-heels.

I followed the directions to the courtyard. There, I saw Hikari.

"Hey Hikari. What does Taichi want me to come to the courtyard for?"

"Hey Meems. Just follow the arrow behind me." I looked behind her. There was a big, bold, black arrow on a yellow background, like a traffic sign, pointing to the left.

I followed the arrow to a narrow path, laid with trees at either side, with well manicured hedges. The trees provided shade, while leaving enough sunlight peeking through. It was beautiful. I never knew that the Takuya family mansion has this kind of place. Suddenly, Takeru popped out of nowhere, holding a similar arrow, but pointed to the right.

"Takeru! You gave me a fright!"

"Just follow the arrow. Tai's waiting for you. Quickly, go!"

I followed the arrow, only to see Yamato's car. I knocked on the car's window. Yamato rolled down the window. "Get into the car. We're going on a trip."

"The gate's the opposite way. You have to make a u-turn."

"There's no need to. The Takuya family's mansion is so big, so how could it only have one gate? The other gate is seldom used and the security there is sparse, so it's a loophole in the Takuya family's surveillance. This gate is a secret between the Takuya Family's Four Gems, so Tai telling you means that he trusts you a lot."

We reached our destination. We got out. "Okay, my duties end here. Mimi, go up yourself." He handed me a key, then drove off.

I recognized the building. It was the building in which Taichi and I viewed that apartment (A/N : After Mimi's bridal dress fitting). I headed up, then unlocked the door. I walked inside. On the glass coffee table was a letter, addressed to me. I opened it. 'Dear Mimi, congratulations, you're finally here. Sorry but there's still more places to go.'

Yagami Taichi, what are you trying to do?

I continued reading. 'Mimi, do you still remember that the first time I met you, I angered you. After that, everytime we met, we would fight. Also, because I didn't want to be Emp.'s successor, I would try to avoid you, and the feelings I have for you. From the bottom of my heart, I regret making you sad because of my dream, so I'll work diligently from now on. Mimi, I want there to be, in my memories more times in which you're happy with me rather than sad. I want to take my future's key, and hand it to you. I want to tell you that my future plans now have you in them, and I'm here, waiting for you.'

I rushed up the stairs, following more arrows. I finally found Taichi on the rooftop garden. He took my hand. He had set up a table with two plates filled with food and two chairs in a corner. He held back a chair for me to sit on. I sat, and he sat down opposite me.

"This is my surprise for you. This is my first time cooking this, so I can't guarantee that it's delicious."

"Not bad, young master. It looks delicious."

We dug in. "It's delicious!"

"Of course. I cooked it." Taichi had a cocky grin on his face.

Suddenly, it started raining. Thankfully, we were sheltered from the rain.

"Do you want to go back in?" Taichi asked.

"No. It's only raining. I love walking in the rain." It's romantic.

After our meal, we danced in the rain, both of us smiling. He hugged me close to him. Then he kissed me.

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Gennai's POV

"Emp., according to the gatekeeper, Master Yagami and Miss Takuya did not leave at the same time." Emp. closed the book that he was reading.

"Not leaving at the same time doesn't mean that they aren't together. Those two probably agreed to meet outside. When Mimi returns, tell her that I have something to tell her."

"Yes."

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Mimi's POV

"We've reached home." Taichi said.

"There's a monitoring system nearby. I think we better be careful, or grandpa will come up with a reason for us to get married." (A/N : Mimi just doesn't want to ruin Taichi's dream by making him be the successor again). I got out of the car, walked towards the main door, turned and gave Taichi a smile, then walked away. Shortly, afterwards, I could hear Taichi driving behind me. Then his car passed by me, and he parked a distance away.

He got out of the car. I walked pass him, saying, "Maintain a 3 centimeter distance, just to be safe." We grinned at each other. Then suddenly, I almost tripped over something.

Head Manager Gennai was lying on the floor, groaning in pain. Then he got up. "Master Yagami, Miss Takuya."

"Head Manager Gennai, when did you start following us?" Taichi asked.

"Don't worry. I didn't hear anything. Keeping the master's secrets is the first rule of being a housekeeper." He turned towards me. "Miss Takuya, I'm here to see you. Emp. wants to talk to you."

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Are the characters too out of character? Please tell me!

And it's NOT over yet.

More drama to come! :D